It's been just over four months since Jay Triano got a life-changing phone call from GM Bryan Colangelo with an offer too good to refuse.

It's been just over four months since Jay Triano got a life-changing phone call from GM Bryan Colangelo with an offer too good to refuse.

And it has been a trying few months since he was elevated from assistant to interim head coach of the Raptors, with more losses than wins, much more disappointment than elation, but ask Triano today if he's a better man for the experience and the answer comes quickly and unequivocally.

"Absolutely," Triano said yesterday after putting the Raptors through their final practice of the season at the Air Canada Centre. "(I've got) a better understanding of things. At first I was overwhelmed by the Xs and Os and the preparation for a game that an assistant coach does, and I still do that, but I think as time went on, I got to understand it's a lot more about the personal dealings with the players and the different ways to motivate different guys and different buttons to push."

No one knows for certain what the future holds for Triano, although Colangelo has dropped numerous hints that he's quite happy with the job the 50-year-old Canadian has done. The home portion of Triano's interim gig ends this evening when the Raptors host the Philadelphia 76ers.

Triano admits he's still got things to learn and aspects of the job to master, but he's also confident he can continue on the path he's taken since getting the job Dec. 3.

He's a sterner disciplinarian than he was when he took over from Sam Mitchell and the respect he gets from the players is evident to anyone who spends any time around the team. Given more talent – and that's a job for his boss – there's no reason to think he couldn't continue to improve given the hard lessons he's already learned.

The other stuff – the stuff that makes it much more difficult to be a head coach than an assistant – he's been able to handle.

"I always said as an assistant, I came in here the same hours, early in the morning and stayed late and was pretty dedicated to the job," Triano said. "It was all basketball all the time and now there's other things. It's not as much basketball as it was when I was an assistant.

"It's the media three times a day on a game day, talking to Bryan about potential trades and free agents and other guys and that. There was a lot more of that that I didn't expect."

But he's handled it. The Raptors are just 22-40 on Triano's watch – an unimpressive record that gnaws at him greatly – but he is of the opinion that that which doesn't kill you makes you stronger.

"Had it been a little bit easier as far as wins and losses, I would have continued to work hard but this is forcing me to dig deeper as far as what I have to improve on and how we can get better and finding ways and means of getting better as a team and as a coach."

Perhaps the most significant aspect of Triano's growth has been his willingness and ability to wield his power. An assistant coach is every player's sounding board, the guy who listens to gripes and groans, and that's a job Triano had for more than six seasons and one with which he was comfortable.

But now that's he's got more power and control, it's telling that no players are even whispering on the side about his personality, his toughness or his willingness to sit players down when they need it.

"Every player thinks that they should be playing more minutes and doing more and getting more shots and scoring more points," he said. "When you're the guy telling them that they're not by means of playing time, I'm sure I'm looked at differently. I think that I've gotten better at cracking the whip a little bit.

"I think it's still in progress right now and over time it will be easier. I think I made some steps towards that as the season went on."

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